Entries in TBS
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Art Streiber/Turner Broadcasting(LOS ANGELES) -- TBS is forking over some serious cash in hopes of boosting ratings for its flagging comedy flagship Conan.The Wall Street Journal reports TBS is paying through the nose to give the flame-haired host a stronger lead-in by airing repeats of The Big Bang Theory at least two nights a week -- at a cost of $2 million per episode.

The network recently canceled its only other late-night show, Lopez Tonight.

Photo Courtesy - TeamCoco [dot] com(BURBANK, Calif.) -- After months of speculation and weeks of hype, Monday night saw the debut of Conan, Conan O'Brien's new TBS late-night show. And if last night's premiere was any indication, Team Coco is definitely on a mission to turn up the fun.

The show began with a recorded sketch that chronicled what O'Brien's been up to since he left NBC and The Tonight Show early this year. The sketch started with O'Brien refusing NBC's offer to move The Tonight Show to midnight, after which he survived a Sonny Corleone Godfather-like assassination attempt.

He then moved on to interview for a job at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce with Mad Men's Jon Hamm, followed by short-lived stints at Burger King and as a clown at a kid's birthday party. After considering suicide, an angelic Larry King told him to go to basic cable. At TBS, O'Brien was handed an offer that read "Much Less," but took it nonetheless.

Following the opening sketch, O'Brien emerged to a two-minute standing ovation, ending with him cracking, "That lasted longer than my last job."

During his monlogue, he addressed his jump to TBS by saying, "It's not easy doing a late-night show, on a channel without a lot of money, that viewers have trouble finding. So that's why I left NBC."

O'Brien's very first guest was a walk-on by Arlene Wagner from the Leavenworth, Washington Nutcracker Museum, who won an online fan poll to score the honor. Other guests included Seth Rogan, Glee's Lea Michele, and Jack White, who teamed with the host for a cover of Eddie Cochran's "20 Flight Rock." Andy Richter again acted as O'Brien's announcer and sidekick.﻿

Perhaps most important to Conan followers, his premiere edged out Jay Leno in the ratings with 4.2 million viewers, compared to Leno's 3.5 million.

None of those stars will be the first guest to appear on the show, however. That honor, according to TMZ.com, belongs to Arlene Wagner, the curator of a nutcracker museum in Washington State. She's the winner of an online poll that asked fans to choose the first guest. Wagner beat out the likes of Jack Nicholson, Lady Gaga and the pope.

After less than eight months as host of The Tonight Show, O'Brien and NBC went their separate ways in January, allowing Jay Leno to return to late-night TV on the network after an ill-fated run in primetime.﻿